Disappointment!

"The Benefit Of The Doubt"... I am a big fan of giving this... whether it be to people who are behaving inexplicably, or to things that are not working as I think they should... because who really knows what's going on behind the scenes?? However, I only have so much patience when it comes to putting faith in something that repeatedly lets me down. What I am alluding to today is... my Olympus 1030SW camera!
After reading many reviews when it first came out and making an informed decision to purchase it, I was initially quite happy with the little guy. It performed well in cold temps, seemed very sturdy, the picture quality was acceptable, and the macro... well! Suffice it to say it was one of the most impressive point'n'shoot macros I've ever used! Everything about the camera was all good, until the first time it was used under water. I don't believe the rated depth was exceeded, because we were only snorkelling with it. But while we had it in the water, the LCD display quit working... so, that was the end of our video and picture taking for that day (and for the rest of the trip as it turned out). Later that evening, after it 'dried out' or something, the display came back, but only intermittently. Which rendered it virtually unusable since we were not able to see the settings or anything anymore. The camera at that point was less than 2 months old, so I took it back to the place of purchase (London Drugs) and had them send it to Olympus for warranty repairs.
I was super excited to get the 1030SW back, but my excitement was short lived. While the display problem had been fixed, now the pictures that were taken were not viewable in-camera. That's right - we could see all the settings, see how the photo was going to be framed, see the picture for the 3 seconds it was displayed on the LCD after pressing the shutter button... but we had to remove the card from the camera and look at the results on the computer. Inconvenient or what!
Back to London Drugs. Explain this new problem. Wait (more and more impatiently) for the camera to come back from Olympus. Anticipate a perfectly operational camera when the box was delivered. Nearly start to cry when we took it outdoors on a hike a few weeks later! The third problem was an atrocious one: vertical red and blue lines across every photo and throughout every video, no matter what the lighting conditions or camera settings. **SIGH**
Yep, you guessed it... back to London Drugs. Explain this new problem. Have them send the piece of crap away... AGAIN... Don't feel at all excited when the Purolator box arrived a few days ago... read the enclosed repair notice from Olympus, in which they describe their actions taken (that had nothing to do whatsoever with what the problem was!)... pretty much drop-kick the camera across the yard after I fire it up and immediately see the red and blue lines... AAACCKKKK!!
So right now, the stupid hunk of junk is sitting in the box, where it will stay until my frustration subsides. I'm afraid I may throw it at the camera salesperson's head if I go back to London Drugs anytime soon. I do realize that it's not the retailer's fault the camera is a lemon, but should they not offer me a replacement, and deal with the manufacturer themselves on this one?? Also, the lack of problem resolution from the Olympus service department doesn't leave me with alot of confidence or praise for their product. In fact, I will NEVER purchase another Olympus product, EVER. And I will NEVER purchase another electronics or related product from London Drugs, either. Unless of course, they agree with my point of view on this and promptly provide a new camera.
I'll keep you posted on this issue.
Cheers.